It always seems like I’m rah-rah-rah-ing about one thing or another aren’t I? Fact is, its always a heck more fun telling friends about things I like, as opposed to telling them about things I don’t. Fact is also, there is a lot I don’t like haha! 😀 But its the stars that stand out in your mind. After all, when I ask a friend for a recommendation, I don’t ask them what they didn’t like, I ask them what they like 😉
Since I’d mentioned 2 face oils from Antipodes and Clarins that worked quite well for me, I thought however, that I’d share with you some of the ones that got away, as it were. It so happens that one of them is very popular and gets loads of raves. Just so happened that my skin didn’t quite like it as much as others had.
Trilogy Rosehip Oil Antioxidant + – RM99/30ml
I was quite excited to try this one because it looked like a veritable cocktail of wonderful oils. Other than the namesake rosehip oil, this Trilogy face oil is a blend of tomato seed oil to prevent against oxidative damage and premature aging, cranberry seed oil which is high in fatty acids, acai seed oil which promotes regenerative growth and collagen production and oat extract.
If you are familiar with the smell of rosehip oil, it smells like that. To be honest, its not a terribly nice smell but I wasn’t bugged by it. The oil is a little thick and 2 drops goes very far.
I liked it initially, I will admit. Just a couple of drops, and my skin felt lovely and soft without feeling too oily. I was hoping it would stay that way and improve further. However, after about 2 weeks of use, I started noticing a lot of clogged pores around my chin. My drier cheeks seem to take to it well, but it didn’t do anything for my chin. I got really tired of it after realising that my clogged pores was due to this oil. After stopping it and clearing the clogged pores, things were fine. But when I tried using it again, the whole nightmare started. So I had to set it aside. Pity. It sounded so promising!
Ingredients: Rosa Canina (Rosehip) Seed Oil, Solanum Lycopersicum (Tomato) Seed Oil, Caprylic/Capric Triglyceride, Vaccinium Macrocarpon (Cranberry) Seed Oil, Helianthus Annuus (Sunflower) Seed Oil, Euterpe Oleracea (Acai) Fruit Oil, Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract
Availability: Most major pharmacies and online
Melvita Rose Hip Oil – RM137/50ml
This one was another promising one. It isn’t pricey for an organic product which Melvita is, and rose hip oil has loads of uses. The most effective use is for scars. Don’t expect instant or quick results but if you are diligent and apply the oil daily to your scars you will notice a significant lightening of it. I’ve tried it over the years and it works to flatten out shallow scars over time. Just don’t expect miracles.
However, I have also realised that maybe my skin can’t tolerate rose hip oil that well. The Rosehip Oil from Melvita states that its more suitable for dry or matured skin but for some reason, I find that rose hip oil in general tends to clog my pores. This one was no exception.
It is rather thick with an orange colour so since I can’t use it for my face, I took to using it as a cuticle oil! Works a treat 😀 Downside of it however, is that it started smelling off after a while. I notice that that is a problem with rosehip oil, ever since I used to use it from when I was much younger. Its best to buy small bottles because they go bad so quickly and when its rancid it stinks. Also, the pump mechanism in the Melvita bottle needs reworking. The oil tends to cake around the top of the pump, the pump gets very messy and the bottle tends to leak. I much prefer oils to come in a dropper mechanism. It always seems to make more sense!
Availability: Melvita stores
Botani Olive Skin Serum – AUD31.95 / RM119 / 15ml
I received this a while ago. Last year I believe. I sort of had high hopes for this Botani Olive Skin Serum because its one of those items that are free from everything harmful and is supposed to be one of those natural eco-friendly brands. Also the claims of anti-aging, hydrating and scar healing drew me in. That and the “OMG! Its quite pricey for the amount you get!” involuntary exclamation.
As an oil, its lovely. Its clear with a light fresh scent and 2 drops is about all you need, massaged into your skin. It made my skin feel lovely and soft after use and with just 4 very good ingredients, it was a recipe for success.
Well, not for me apparently because it turns out that I am one of those rare people who is allergic to olive oil. Not ingested, that would be a disaster! I love using olive oil in cooking. But I cannot tolerate olive oil or its extracts on my skin. It almost always clogs my pores something awful and eventually breaks me out in cystic acne. Yes, the bloody painful sort.
And that’s what happened here. After a week of use, I had a mess of clogged pores and breakouts and I didn’t even make the connection until one day I took a closer look at this serum and saw that the key ingredient was squalene derived from olives. Bingo! Into the bin it went! Well not really. I tried using it for my body or my elbows and knees but it just didn’t work so I abandoned it… until now 😉
Ingredients: Squalene (derived from olives), Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Vitamin E (Tocopherol), Lecithin
Availability: Botani website or on various online stores in Malaysia, just do a search
Bottom Line
Every single one of the oils featured here have received rave reviews online and they are pretty good as far as ingredients go. In fact, you hardly get more natural than oil for skin. The unfortunate thing was that neither of these worked on my skin (I have combination-dry skin) which I thought was a pity because they work so well for everyone else!
So I’m not saying they are bad products. I believe they are good stuff. The Melvita Rose Hip oil works for Xin and the Botani Olive Skin Serum works for Dom and the ladies at Beaut.ie love the Trilogy Rosehip Oil Antioxidant +. In fact, the Trilogy oil is a very popular product. I haven’t yet come across anyone who didn’t like it. Well, except for me of course 😀
So don’t let me put you off trying these if you know for a fact that your skin can tolerate rosehip oil and olive oil extracts. If you can (and I’m naturally intensely jealous of you) these are worth trying simply because oils can do so much more for your skin than creams, sometimes 🙂
Have you tried any of the oils featured here? Did it work for you?
Sadly of course, these didn’t work for me which is a lot to do with my skin’s tolerance for the ingredients rather than a poorly conceived product. I did keep the Trilogy oil and sneak it into my routine once or twice a week. I like how my skin feels and since I can’t use it daily, I can at least use it weekly 🙂
Paris B
I’d heard good things about the Trilogy too so it’s always nice to have a real world review. Sometimes cheaper versions of the same thing are actually better.
Wow superb writings on the 3 rose hip oil products, Yup i definitely agree the rose hip oil bottle is important to be Brown or Black because it is very sensitive to sunlight and can damage the nutrient.
Hi! I was linked to this post from your latest on facial oils you love/like. i was just so heartened to see that you too have a reaction to squalene/olive derivatives. for the longest time, i reacted to all sorts of cleansing oils and couldn’t figure out why. then i learnt to scrutinise the ingredient list and realised most of them featured olive oil! i developed my suspicion but couldnt many others who had the same sensitivity… so was my suspicion correct? you helped to validate it so thank you! i still have a full unopened bottle of indie lee’s squalene oil… maybe i’ll just use it as a very expensive body oil.
Hi Nicole, it’s it great to find someone else who has the same issues we do when it comes to skincare? 🙂 I have learnt that we are never alone in our misery and I’m glad you’ve isolated olive oil or its derivatives as an issue for your skin. I’ve found out that sometimes, I’m sensitive to the most obscure things, and it’s always heartening when others feel the same, or it helps someone isolate issues they may have with their skincare.